[Marlboro]

Never seen this before, they are grown under a net covered polytunnel and its true I have no caterpillars but baby earthworms! They seem to wash out ok but my OH who does the cooking doesn't like them very much.

[bloomer]

whats worse than an earthworm in your sprout?


half an earth worm in your sprout!!! 










sorry cant help but couldn't resist!!!

[little blue]

nice!

some of mine have blown ... happened a while ago - is it the hot weather that causes it?!

[cloddopper]

I was advised last year that you need give a light mulch of compost round each plant and scratch it in ... Pick up any fallen leaves as they not only make a breeding ground for Byrotis ( Sp ) , worms eat them and live under them .
When the food content of the leaves dwindle   the worms go in search of other food sources .. they don't normally eat healthy growing matter .  If you have a liquidizer  liquidise some brassica leaves in a pint of water and mix a 1/4 cup of it to the plant mulch 

Apparently the worms tend to stay  in the compost eating the quality decaying matter instead of going up to the sprouts
 
Some folks have said that they sprinkled blue slug pellets around the bases of their Brussels and swear that this also keep worms out the sprouts.

[Spinningfishwife]

One of the things that encourages sprouts to blow is loose soil. When you plant out you need to really firm the soil down well all the way round, using the heel of your boot and working out so there's a good few inches of compacted soil all the way round the transplant. I used to then put a large square of carpet underlay round the transplant, 12"x 12", none of this tiddly little collar thing. (You cut a slot to one side and a 1" hole in the centre, to get it round the plant.) This stops all sorts of things getting to the base of the plant and climbing up the stalk.

The easy way to get rid of slugs, aphids and other creepy things from your leafy veg is to soak them in a sink of cold salty water for ten minutes or so.

I remember my SIL phoning me up to ask if I had found caterpillars in the broccoli we'd just harvested, her OH had been half way through eating a plateful when she'd noticed. I inspected my half of the crop and it was absolutely crawling with perfectly camouflaged little caterpillars. I don't think she told her OH about them though!

[little blue]

thankyou